Incorruptible is an ongoing

Ongoing series

The term "ongoing series" is used in contrast to limited series , a one shot , a graphic novel, or a trade paperback...

 American comic book

American comic book

An American comic book is a small magazine originating in the United States and containing a narrative in the form of comics. Since 1975 the dimensions have standardized at 6 5/8" x 10 ¼" , down from 6 ¾" x 10 ¼" in the Silver Age, although larger formats appeared in the past...

 series written by Mark Waid

Mark Waid

Mark Waid is an American comic book writer. He is well known for his eight-year run as writer of the DC Comics' title The Flash, as well as his scripting of the limited series Kingdom Come and Superman: Birthright, and his work on Marvel Comics' Captain America...

 and published by Boom! Studios

Boom! Studios

BOOM! Studios is an American comic book company headquartered in Los Angeles, California, United States. The "BOOM!" in BOOM! Studios is always capitalized by the company.-History:BOOM! was founded June 22, 2005 with Zombie Tales #1....

. The series follows former supervillain Max Damage in his quest to become a superhero. The book is a spin-off of another Waid comic, Irredeemable

Irredeemable

Irredeemable is an ongoing American comic book series written by Mark Waid and published by Boom! Studios. The series follows the fall of the world's greatest superhero, the Plutonian, as he begins slaughtering the population of Earth...

, which follows the transformation of a superhero into a supervillain. Incorruptible was first published on December 16, 2009 as Incorruptible #1 and as of September 2011 consists of twenty-two issues. Marcio Takara is the current and longest-serving artist on the series, having provided art since Incorruptible #11 in October 2010.

Publication history

Initial pre-publication publicity for Irredeemable, the parent series of Incorruptible, utilized the tagline "Mark Waid is Evil! Mark Waid is Irredeemable!", which culminated with the release of a limited edition "Mark Waid is Evil" tee-shirt at the 2009 New York Comic Con. Promotion for Incorruptible follows a similar vein, with the use of the tagline "Mark Waid was Evil, Mark Waid is Incorruptible"

Incorruptible #1 was first released in December 2009 with pencils provided by Jean Diaz, ink by Belardino Brabo and colors by Andrew Dalhouse. Two alternate covers were provided for the issue: the first by John Cassaday

John Cassaday

John Cassaday is an American comic book artist and writer, born in Fort Worth, Texas and currently residing in New York City. He is known for having a high level of precision and realism in his work....

, with colors by Laura Martin

Laura Martin

Laura DePuy is an award-winning colorist who has produced work for several of the major comics companies, including DC Comics, Marvel Comics and CrossGen.-Career:...

, and the second by Tim Sale

Tim Sale (artist)

Tim Sale is an American Eisner Award-winning comic book artist. He is primarily known for his collaborations with writer Jeph Loeb.-Early life:...

, with inks by Paul Azaceta and colors by Matthew Wilson. A third limited-edition cover drawn by Jeffrey Spokes was also made available, appearing on one in every ten copies of the book.

Diaz and Brabo left the series after issue four (March 2010), with Horacio Domingues taking on art duties for Incorruptible #5 (April 2010). Starting with issue six (May 2010), Domingues provided pencils, with inks by Juan Castro. Incorruptible #10 (September 2010) saw the departure of colorist Dalhouse, replaced by Nolan Woodward, and the addition of Michael Babinski on inks. Issue eleven (October 2010) saw Babinski, Domingues and Castro leave the series, replaced by Marcio Takara as the sole artist.

Development

Incorruptible was developed as a spin-off to the comic series Irredeemable that follows the premise of what happens when a supervillain becomes a superhero. In September 2009, newcomer Neil Edwards had been announced as artist on the series, but by the time of release of the first issue, he had been replaced by Jean Diaz. Before the launch of the series, the central character of Max Damage had been intended to rename himself to Max Daring as a superhero. In a November 2010 interview, Waid confirmed that the name change had been abandoned as he felt that, unlike the Plutonian to whom branding would be important, Max "could not possibly care less what anyone else in the world thinks of him" and he would not be interested in adopting a heroic moniker.

In August 2010, Waid stated that he preferred writing Incorruptible to Irredeemable, saying "Max is just funnier. There’s just no humor in ‘Irredeemable.’ To make ‘Irredeemable’ work well, I have got to look into ugly, ugly parts of my soul.".

Starting in Irredeemable #19 (November 2010) and continuing through to Irredeemable #27 (July 2011), the Plutonian is finally defeated by an alien force, captured, and taken off world. Waid wanted to remove the Plutonian from Earth in order for Max to be able to "establish himself as the law" in Incorruptible. Waid confirmed that the Plutonian would make his debut in the Incorruptible comic in Incorruptible #22, the Plutonian's return leading to a confrontation with Max. In August 2011, Waid confirmed a new sidekick for Max, "Hate Crime", the reformed villain "Safeword"—Max's third sidekick after "Jailbait" and "Headcase".

Volume 1 (#1 - #4)

In the month since the former superhero, Plutonian, began his rampage across Earth, supervillain Max Damage has disappeared and is presumed dead. After his gang commit a robbery, Max suddenly reappears and subdues them for arrest. Max returns to his base and destroys all of the possessions and money he stole, and refuses to have sex with his underage lover, Jailbait. Max tells Lieutenant Louis Armadale that he wants to go straight and asks for his help. Max first goes after Origin, a supervillain offering to empower ordinary humans in exchange for money. Origin requires money to buy a teleporter from the villain Amberjack to escape Earth. Later, Max tells Armadale about why he decided to become a hero. On the day that Plutonian began his attack, Max was about to unleash a deadly plague that would kill billions, out of anger against ordinary people who possess the ability to taste, smell and feel; sensations his powers prevent. However, before he can release the plague, Plutonian attacks, killing millions. Max realized that without the Plutonian, the world needed a new hero. In the present, Max goes after Amberjack. Amberjack uses his giant robot to attack Max. Max throws Amberjack's teleporter at Jailbait who knocks it towards the robot, sending it away. Jailbait realizes that Max intended to send her away and leaves, disregarding Max's protestations that he wanted to send her somewhere safe.

Volume 2 (#5 - #8)

Max rescues a young girl named Annie from her kidnappers. He forces her to wear Jailbait's costume and accompany him on patrol, eventually revealing he is using her to convince his enemies that Jailbait is still with him, fearing that otherwise she will become a target. The ruse fails and Armadale gives Max a box containing Jailbait's finger, sent by the villain Deathgiver. Max confronts Deathgiver and distracts him while Armadale frees Jailbait. Max fights with Deathgiver and his henchmen while Armadale tries to stop a distraught Jailbait from leaping to her death. Armadale fails but Max manages to catch her in time, though she suffers injuries. Meanwhile, Annie returns home to find her family murdered by the racist Diamond gang. Max and Armadale take Jailbait to hospital. Annie, there with her family, recognizes Armadale and realizes that the young girl is Jailbait. She steals Jailbait's costume and flees. Max confronts members of the Diamond gang who reveal they have been told his secrets by someone who survived Plutonian's destruction of Sky City. Max falls asleep in hospital and when he awakens, he is shot by a Diamond gang-member, his powers revealed to reset when he sleeps, rendering him temporarily mortal. Annie, dressed as Jailbait, takes out Max's assassin. She makes Max promise to protect her forever before injecting him with adrenalin to keep him alive long enough for his powers to activate and heal his injuries. After attacking the Diamond gang members that sent Max's assassin, Max and Annie discover that they knew his vulnerability through a manuscript written by Alana Patel, the Plutonian's former girlfriend.

Volume 3 (#9 - #12)

Max and Annie travel to Alana's apartment but discover only Diamond gang members who tell them that Alana is at their skyscraper. Max sees Alana bound at the top of the building and climbs up to her while Annie sneaks in from the ground floor against Max's wishes. Max finds that the "Alana" on the building is a mannequin, while Annie is attacked by the real Alana. Annie convinces Alana she is not the real Jailbait, who had tortured her in the past, and ends up getting drunk with her. Max, attacks the Diamond gang, led by Senator Swain, who have sent a massive assault vehicle named "Retribution" to destroy Coalville, Max's home city. While travelling to face "Retribution", Alana reveals that she blames herself for Plutonian's rampage after outing his secret civilian identity, Dan Hartigan. Max tells her that it is not her fault and asks her to help him do good. Meanwhile, Swain goes on television and accuses Max of leading the Diamond gang and sending out Retribution, asking everyone to work together to kill him. Alana informs the news that Swain leads the Diamond gang, causing Swain's boss, Hayes Bellamy, to detonate an explosive in Swain's building, killing Swain and his followers. Max meanwhile faces Retribution, managing to lift it. The vehicle activates legs to walk but they are less protected than the body and Max is able to break them. Retribution's operators threaten to activate a nuclear device, but Armadale uses confiscated supervillain weapons to breach the vehicles armor and the drivers are arrested. Alana and Max agree to work together.

Volume 4 (#13 - #16)

Alana confides her current situation in Hayes Bellamy unaware of his involvement with the Diamond gang. Max has been working on a plan to stop Plutonian, forgoing sleep for days and becoming erratic. Annie sneaks away and fights the villain Arsonol, defeating him but really attempting to get herself killed. Max arrives and goes with her to visit her families graves where she reveals a gravestone in her own name, declaring her old life dead. Max reveals his plan to stop Plutonian which Armadale and Alana agree will work and will gain Max his redemption. Before he can enact it however, the Vespan, an alien race, telepathically announces to the world that they have captured the Plutonian and he is no longer a threat. In the wake of Plutonian's defeat, the world celebrates. Max chases after and captures Joe Bonn, a pickpocket but he is confronted by the Paradigm, a group of surviving superheroes, who want to arrest him. After a brief fight, the Paradigm offers Max a membership to help rebuild the world. Max refuses unless they repair Coalville first. They agree to create a machine to purify the local water for drinking. Annie arrives but is accused of being a poser by Paradigm member Qubit and Max tells her that they cannot be partners, causing her to run away. After meeting up with Armadale, Annie incapacitates him and steals the powerful gun he had previously used against Retribution. Meanwhile, Hayes reveals his plan to distract the poor and hungry from his life of wealth and luxury by creating incidents such as the Diamond gang and now he intends to use Max. Max and the Paradigm successfully create the water purification device but Annie returns and shoots Qubit, killing him. Max tells Annie that he is taking her in for murder. Qubit's ally Kaidan summons a water deity to revive him and they finish building the water purifier. When it is activated, the water turns to blood. After tasting it, Max recognizes it as goat blood, part of a spell by Nebuchadnezzar Grass and his mother Loretta, sorcerer hired by Hayes to cause disruption. Max defeats the pair. Annie is imprisoned for murder.

Incorruptible #17 - #20

After their home is attacked by civilians, Alana takes Max to meet Hayes and hear his proposal. Hayes offers Max a base, weapons and funding for his cause but Max refuses, believing the funding should be spent helping those in need. After leaving Hayes, Max is attacked by the villains Tumult, Safeword and Charlie Hustle. When Max begins to win, Safeword uses her power to force Max to stop, and they flee. When Max recovers, Bellamy agrees to fund the repair of the city if Max can bring him one honest man to run it. Alana accepts for Max. Max later wonders if Bellamy knows why the villains did not finish him while he was incapacitated. Max recruits Armadale to help him find Mike Whelan, a former federal prosecutor to become the city manager. Meanwhile, Charlie, Safeword and Tumult are revealed to be working for Hayes. They are attending a gathering of several supervillains planning to cause chaos. Alana, having discovered a secret about Hayes, is subdued with gas. Max finds Mike but he refuses to help, revealing that Max killed his son. The supervillains begin causing death and destruction around Coalville. Max holds Mike hostage while he attempts to convince Mike to take the job. Alana is captured by the villains who attempt to sexually assault her. Safeword uses her power to make them all stop and frees Alana, having been a fan of her since a child. While Max is still attempting to convince Mike, Charlie Hustle attacks him, ripping out Mike's heart. Charlie then uses a gas-bomb on Max to make him fall asleep, using knowledge unintentionally provided by Alana. Max is taken to Hayes who takes advantage of Max's power reset to repeatedly shoot him, put him to sleep and then start again. Armadale, having been sober for years, falls back on alcohol after learning that Max killed Mike's child. Hayes continues to torture Max, claiming he will use him to cause destruction to continue his own plans. Jailbait suddenly attacks, killing Hayes and his men before freeing Max. Jailbait then leaves.

Incorruptible #21 - #24

Max begins building an unknown structure. Armadale tells Max that whatever happened before the Plutonian's rampage does not matter if they are to survive, commending Max for not sliding back into old habits as Armadale did with alcohol. A gathering of villains contemplate what to do, bored of their unchallenged crimes. The villain St. Lucifer appears over Coalville in his ship and captures the villainous gang. Armadale attempts to gather his police force only find they have all abandoned their jobs. Max ignores Lucifer's ship and continues to build. Lucifer offers the villains, including Jailbait, the opportunity to serve him when he conquers Coalville, the last city with any type of infrastructure. Max finds and incarcerates Charlie in the building he has created; a jail. St. Lucifer sends his minions to kill Max, hoping to present his head to the Plutonian as a peace offering, but before he can act Plutonian arrives and attacks Max, demanding to know Alana's location. Max proves a match for Plutonian as their battle is broadcast on the news. Plutonian demands to know where Alana is, unable to hear or see her, but Max claims that she is smart enough to hide from Plutonian. Max thanks Plutonian for inspiring him to become a better person, and then requests that Plutonian leave Coalville. Max says something to the Plutonian which causes him to agree to the request and leave. The news covers Max's victory as Coalville cheers him. With Coalville now considered the only safe place thanks to Max, the combined US/Chinese forces move in to turn the city into a high-security, military complex, and enlist Max to their cause. Lucifer's villain gang attacks the nuclear plant to seize control of Coalville's power. Max decides that the only way to get what he wants - the freedom to protect Coalville independently in his own way - is to ally with Lucifer and evict the military.

Central

• Max Damage - A reformed supervillain, Max decides to become a superhero in the wake of the destruction caused by the superhero Plutonian's breakdown and subsequent attacks and massacres. When he sleeps, his powers reset to base-human levels but within an hour of waking his skin becomes virtually indestructible and his strength begins to increase. The longer he is awake the more powerful he becomes but he loses his sense of touch, smell and taste as a result. Max is capable of staying awake for days but still suffers the effects of sleep deprivation, reducing his ability to think coherently or concentrate. Max is shown to not understand how to be a hero, knowing only to do the opposite of what he did as a supervillain. This causes him to enforce a strict moral code.
• Louis Armadale - A high-ranking police lieutenant in the Coalville Police department and a former alcoholic. He agrees to help Max on his road to redemption but keeps the arrangement secret from the rest of the police. Though reluctant to work with Max due to his criminal past, Armadale comes to consider Max his friend. He falls back into alcohol after learning Max, before he reformed, had murdered a child.
• Alana Patel - The Plutonian's former girlfriend and frequent target of Max while he was a supervillain. After the Plutonian's rampage, she is captured by the Diamond Gang and used as an offering for the Plutonian. She escapes with Max and Headcase. Alana agrees to work with Max in his quest to rebuild Coalville but unwittingly provides information about his weaknesses to his enemies. Max ends their partnership after he realizes she is the source of the information. Waid has stated that Alana is looking for redemption through Max for her role in Plutonian's fall — outing his secret identity.
• Jailbait / Terri - Jailbait is Max's former sidekick and underage ex-girlfriend. After reforming, Max refuses to continue his relationship with her. Jailbait refuses to give up her criminal lifestyle, clashing with Max's new ideology. She is captured by the villain Deathgiver who removes one of her fingers. Believing Max no longer wants her, she attempts suicide but is saved by Max. In Issue 7, she willingly leaves Max, realizing they can no longer be together. Jailbait returns in Issue 20, saving Max following his capture and torture by Hayes. She tells Max that he saved her. Jailbait later joins St. Lucifer's gang of villains.
• Headcase / Annie - The second person to be called Jailbait, taking on the role initially against her will. She willingly becomes the new Jailbait after the Diamond gang brutally kill her family. Max renames her Headcase, disliking her using the Jailbait name. After the loss of her family, she states that "Annie" is dead, referring to herself only as Headcase. Headcase engages herself in dangerous situations attempting to get herself killed. Max has Annie imprisoned for murder after she shoots Paradigm member Qubit, fearing he will make Max abandon her.

Recurring

• Hayes Bellamy - A billionaire who uses crime and destruction to ensure the general populace are too distracted to notice his wealth and luxury life in the Plutonian-ravaged Coalville. He is killed by Jailbait in Issue 20.
• Charlie Hustle - A short supervillain working for Hayes. Possesses super speed and is often seen wearing a football helmet. When Max tries to recruit Mike Whelan to run Coalville, Charlie rips Mike's heart out and uses a special gas to render Max unconscious. Charlie is eventually captured by Max and incarcerated in his super jail.
• Safeword / Hate Crime - Female supervillain working for Hayes. Possess the magical ability to make people stop whatever they are doing by saying "Stop". After seeing other supervillains slaughter civilians without heroes to stop them, Safeword decides to distance herself from them. She rescues the villains' hostage Alana. She becomes a crimefighter, renaming herself Hate Crime, stating "I hate crime". In July 2011, Waid stated that Hate Crime is to become Max's third sidekick, after Jailbait and Headcase.

Recurring minor

• Tumult - A tall, muscular, purple supervillain possessing super strength. Works with Charlie Hustle for Hayes.
• Fatcat - A large, fat supervillain, dressed in a white business suit.
• Tiger Beetle / Tiger Moth - A technological-based supervillain who wears armor with design inspired by a Tiger Beetle
  Tiger beetle
  The tiger beetles are a large group of beetles known for their aggressive predatory habits and running speed. The fastest species of tiger beetle can run at a speed of 9 km/h , which, relative to its body length, is about 22 times the speed of former Olympic sprinter Michael Johnson, the...
  
  . Beheaded by agents of St. Lucifer. The character's name is initially given as Tiger Beetle in Issue 18, but he is referred to as Tiger Moth in Issue 21.
• Mother Eve - A transgender supervillain who appears as a naked woman wrapped in a live snake. Eve is shot by one of her victims after intervention from Safeword/Hate Crime.
• Butcher - A muscular, masked supervillain who wields an oversized hatchet.
• The Diamond Gang - A cult-like group of racist criminals that claim to follow the will of the Plutonian. Lead by Senator Jefferson Swain, they are unwittingly used to create chaos, distracting the general populace from the actions of Hayes.

Minor

• Deathgiver - A skilled strategist supervillain. Deathgiver captures and ransoms Jailbait to Max, sending him her severed finger. His bribery attempt fails and Max defeats him.
• Origin - A scientist supervillain, real name David Orjean. Able to make ordinary people into superhumans but with a very low rate of survival. Gives people powers for money in order to buy a teleporter from Amberjack and escape Earth and the Plutonian. He comments that he knows the origin of Max's powers.
• Amberjack - A cyborg supervillain equipped with advanced weaponry and technology. Amberjack inherited all of his equipment from his father and lacks the knowledge to maintain them properly or make new ones.
• Nebuchadnezzar and Loretta Grass - A son and mother team of sorcerer supervillains who practice "sex magick" through incest.
• Mike Whelan - A former Federal defender who repeatedly went after Max while he was a supervillain. Max tries to recruit him to lead Coalville, believing him to be an honest man. However, Mike refuses accusing Max of murdering his son. Mike is killed by Charlie Hustle.
• The Plutonian - A Superman
  Superman
  Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
  
  -like supervillain of near-limitless power who was formerly the world's greatest superhero. The central villain of the parent book Irredeemable. His breakdown and resulting attacks on Earth inspire Max to become a superhero. In August 2011, Waid confirmed that Plutonian would make his first physical appearance in the series in Incorruptible #22. Incorruptible #22 (September 2011) debuted the Plutonian as he attacks Max, seeking Alana's location.
• The Paradigm - A group of superheroes, formerly lead by the Plutonian. The central characters of the parent book Irredeemable. The group, consisting of Qubit, Kaidan, and Survivor, offer supervillains an amnesty in order to help rebuild the world.
• St. Lucifer - A powerful, aristocratic supervillain who inspires terror in the lower-tier supervillains. Possesses a genius intellect and is capable of creating advanced technology. In Issue #24, he makes an alliance with Max to share Coalville.
• Colonel Big Action - An African-American child supervillain who works with Butcher and Fatcat. Killed during an assault on the US military.

Reception

Doug Zawisa of Comicbookresources.com positively received the first issue of Incorruptible, awarding it 3.5 out of 5 stars. Zawisa compared it favorably to Irredeemable, labeling it "engaging" and praising Waid for making the characters "not only interesting, but compelling". Diaz's art also received positive mention as "solid, detailed, and rugged." Miguel Perez of IGN

IGN

IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...

awarded the issue a "Good" score of 7.5 out of 10, claiming Incorruptible's " long road to redemption to be more interesting than that of Irredeemable." Perez was however critical of the art, stating "there were at least three occasions where Max's face looked completely different. In fact, the only way I could tell for sure that it was the same character was the white streak in his hair and the leather jacket." Perez also criticized Max's design as "generic bad ass." Comics Bulletin

Comics Bulletin

Comics Bulletin is a website with an emphasis on the American comic book industry, updated daily with news, reviews, interviews, and editorial content. Coverage ranges from mainstream to independent/small press comic book and graphic novel publishers.-History:...

offered a mixed response providing a mean score of 2.8 out of 5 based on three reviewers: Jason Sacks, Chris Kiser, and Danny Djeljosevic. Sacks and Kiser appreciated the concept with Sacks offering calling it a perfect companion to Irredeemable. Djeljosevic however, claimed the plot lacked "nuance" and surprise. Sacks and Djeljosevic were critical of Diaz's art as "inconsistent" and Max's design. Countering, Kiser appreciated the art as a "simple, iconic superhero art style."

Incorruptible Volume 3 was well received by Comics Bulletin critic Mike Prezatto, who appreciated the intricate, gradual changes of Max into a better, more heroic persona as "relateable". Prezatto offered mixed praise of the art, calling it inconsistent, citing repeated change in creative teams behind the series. Prezatto preferred Takara's "bold style" to Domingues' work and felt that the series "would step up a notch in quality" if Takara became a long-term artist. Prezatto awarded the volume 3.5 out of 5.

Dave Powell of Comics Bulletin awarded Incorruptible Volume 4 a score of 3.5 out of 5, praising Waid for mixing "the psychological drama seamlessly with action and plot." Powell offered some criticism of Takara's art, stating "while Marcio Takara’s art works very well in this trade, sometimes it wears thin for me. The characters are a little stiff at times...some of you will LOVE the art. Some of you will call me an idiot for feeling there’s a tiny bit missing in it." However, Powell "enjoyed" the color work of Nolan Woodward, saying "when the action hits, color explodes off the page." Summarizing, Powell called the volume "a solid, exciting, and visually pleasing Trade Paperback."

Collected editions

The series is being collected into trade paperback

Trade paperback (comics)

In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...

:

• Volume 1 (collects issues #1–4, 128 pages, Boom! Studios
  Boom! Studios
  BOOM! Studios is an American comic book company headquartered in Los Angeles, California, United States. The "BOOM!" in BOOM! Studios is always capitalized by the company.-History:BOOM! was founded June 22, 2005 with Zombie Tales #1....
  
  , paperback, June 2010, ISBN 1608860159)
• Volume 2 (collects issues #5-8, 128 pages, Boom! Studios, paperback, Oct 2010, ISBN 1608860280)
• Volume 3 (collects issues #9-12, 128 pages, Boom! Studios, paperback, Feb 2011, ISBN 1608860395)
• Volume 4 (collects issues #13-16, 128 pages, Boom! Studios, paperback, July 2011, ISBN 1608860566)